Poverty, by America

Written by Matthew Desmond

Narrated by Dion Graham

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Evicted reimagines the debate on poverty, making a “provocative and compelling” (NPR) argument about why it persists in America: because the rest of us benefit from it.

A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The New Yorker, The New York Times Book Review, NPR, Oprah Daily, Time, The Star Tribune, Vulture, The Christian Science Monitor, Chicago Public Library, Esquire, California Review of Books, She Reads, Library Journal

“Urgent and accessible . . . Its moral force is a gut punch.”—The New Yorker

Longlisted for the Inc. Non-Obvious Book Award • Longlisted for the Andrew Carnegie Medal

The United States, the richest country on earth, has more poverty than any other advanced democracy. Why? Why does this land of plenty allow one in every eight of its children to go without basic necessities, permit scores of its citizens to live and die on the streets, and authorize its corporations to pay poverty wages? 
 
In this landmark book, acclaimed sociologist Matthew Desmond draws on history, research, and original reporting to show how affluent Americans knowingly and unknowingly keep poor people poor. Those of us who are financially secure exploit the poor, driving down their wages while forcing them to overpay for housing and access to cash and credit. We prioritize the subsidization of our wealth over the alleviation of poverty, designing a welfare state that gives the most to those who need the least. And we stockpile opportunity in exclusive communities, creating zones of concentrated riches alongside those of concentrated despair. Some lives are made small so that others may grow.
 
Elegantly written and fiercely argued, this compassionate book gives us new ways of thinking about a morally urgent problem. It also helps us imagine solutions. Desmond builds a startlingly original and ambitious case for ending poverty. He calls on us all to become poverty abolitionists, engaged in a politics of collective belonging to usher in a new age of shared prosperity and, at last, true freedom.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
• Release date: Mar 21, 2023
• ISBN: 9780593668061

Reviews for Poverty, by America

[t1bnotown · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I guess it’s expected that a book about poverty will be depressing, and yes on that plus surprising (like you put the facts out and it’s worse than you’d expect, even expecting it to be bad). I did find it progressively less interesting, but important. So to summarize- poverty is bad, we could fund social programs by taxing the rich properly and cutting corporate welfare, but ultimately the solution is to stop segregating the poor. Worthwhile read, just not a page turner.

[pepperwings · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Excellent examination of how and why people become and stay poor in America. A few ideas of how to create change, I would have liked to see more, but I think it's an incremental process, even if we can get government changes--though that would certainly speed it up!

[nmele_4 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Desmond knows poverty and is not content to simply describe it. In this short book he inquires as to why poverty exists in the richest nation in the world. His argument and evidence is convincing: poverty in America exists and is increasing because we have contented ourself with government and economic structures which benefit the wealthier at the expense of the poorer. Desmond also offers suggestions on how to begin to reform our systems to make it possible for working people to lift out of poverty. All this in under 300 pages (about a third of the book is footnotes and other apparatus).

[anamie-694496 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book touched on a lot of great points pushing the reader to take action against poverty. I do think it is unrealistic of a goal to put mind into our purchases as corporations have consolidated but there are definitely other strategies outlined in the book that make sense. I found parts of the book almost textbook repetitive. It is clear the author is passionate about this topic. I don't think it's a book I could recommend to many people because of it. But I could definitely bring up concepts that I have taken away from the book.

[dorritt_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Why is it that poverty persists in the U.S., a country uniquely blessed with ample resources and opportunities? You don’t have to look far for strongly-held opinions: immigrants are taking the jobs, poor people are lazy, poor people need to be pulling themselves up by their bootstraps, increasing minimum wage leads to higher unemployment, institutionalized racism continues to stack the decks against minority populations.

Desmond’s done yoeman’s work identifying and analyzing the research that’s actually been done on poverty to separate the wheat from the chaff, shedding light on the actual factors that perpetuate poverty and dispelling the myths that get in the way of a reasoned, rational, discussion of the issue – the kind of discussion we need to have in order to begin dismantling the obstacles to helping people escape poverty and build wealth.

To be clear, this isn’t a research report. Desmond’s got a strong point of view – that the U.S. suffers from institutionalized, structural immorality when it comes to exploiting people in poverty – and he’s not above cherry-picking the data to prove his point. (For instance, he’ll compare unemployment figures now vs. the Great Depression, without correcting for population growth.) But that doesn’t mean that the data he’s included isn’t valid, as the books 76 pages of annotated footnotes will attest.

The good news: once you work your way through the increasingly bleak chapters that examine the myriad ways in which the U.S. profits from poverty, misdirects funds meant to alleviate poverty, and continues to prioritize programs that subsidize poverty rather than alleviate it, you get to the chapters where Desmond starts talking about solutions. Some of the solutions feel a little pie-in-the-sky (regardless of morality, we Americans have an ingrained, dog-whistle aversion to anything that smacks of socialism that I don’t see going anywhere), others are so easily implemented (more oversight of predatory lending and housing, more child care so people can work, reforming federal/state poverty-alleviation programs to increase efficiency, reducing barriers to unionization), one emerges from these chapters with a sense that solutions are available, if and when our nation ever evinces the political will to address the problem. (Are you listening, politicians? If 1 in 7 Americans live in poverty, that’s 14% of the vote up for grabs!)

At 189 pages (less footnotes & indexes), this is a short read, but an incredibly powerful one. I went into this thinking that I was pretty well educated about the subject, but even I emerged with important new understandings and perspectives. Whether you agree with Desmond’s thesis, you can’t argue with his data, which suggests that as long as we Americans continue to profit from poverty, it’s not going anywhere.

[spoko_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Considering Evicted, and all the hype that has surrounded this book, I guess I had expected it to be more substantive. It struck me as not much more than a polemic. Its central argument—poverty is structural, and those of us who benefit from the same structure(s) should realize our own complicity—isn't very enlightening or helpful. I agree with the final guidance—we need more integration (both economic and racial) in American society. But again, I didn't find Desmond's articulation of it especially groundbreaking or powerful. I'm sure this will raise awareness for a lot of people, and hopefully it will help budge the needle a bit. But if you already realize that tax avoidance and NIMBYism are obnoxious ways to behave, you're probably not going to get a lot from this.

[smashbasile · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

An excellent look, at a disgusting issue in America. It's a searing accounting of poverty and it digs into the meat of the issue. Everyone should read this book.

[suesbooks · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

After being so impressed with Evicted, I was very disappointed in this book. I agree that our society would be much better if we all worked to eliminate poverty, but desmond's arguments were not persuative. They also were too idealistic considering the way the worled is moving. I wish this were not so. he also indicated that many of those in poverty may not be interested in leaving their state, which i also found unrealistic based on people i know.

[jaylcee · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book should be required reading. America's economic system and class system is appalling. The segregation of the "have nots" from the "haves," the preferential treatment of the "haves" by the entire system, and the exploitation of the poor and working classes are exposed in this excellent book.

[arubabookwoman · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I loved Matthew Desmond's Evicted when I read it a few years ago. It was an eye-opening expose of the precarious housing situation faced by the less fortunate among us. In this one, Desmond asks, Why is there so much poverty in America?, and states that he wrote this book to answer that question. The book definitely proves that there is a lot of poverty in America; it goes a long way to show why that poverty exists, and why the situation does not seem to be improving. I'm not sure it comes up with any good answers about what to do about this problem, however.

The first part of the book is replete with facts that show Yes, Indeed, there is a lot of poverty in America. I took lots of notes on these factoids in my reading journal, but won't include them here. The facts are the facts, and the examples he uses to establish that there is an epidemic of poverty that is only growing worse is both infuriating and heart-breaking.

I will note that one important thing that he consistently points out is that we need to stop blaming the poor for being poor. The entire system is rigged against them. For example, due to their inability to access reasonable banking services they must rely on things like usurious payday loans, and if they manage to have a bank account they are continuously subjected to outrageous overdraft fees, and if they have no bank account they are subject to outrageous check-cashing fees on their wage checks. The conclusion is that frequently poverty is not simply the lack of money, but also the lack of choices and being taken advantage of every which way you turn. And he consistently reinforces the message, that in general we, the more fortunate, benefit from the poverty of others. We are less willing to invest in public goods, want to maintain our nice neighborhoods with restrictive zoning laws, and want the benefit of cheap goods and labor.

He does come up with some recommendations/solutions, which to a certain extent may be simplistic and/or impossible to implement (particularly in the current political situation). Here in bullet point are some of the suggestions he makes:

--Make sure low income Americans get connected to available aid, and don't make it so hard to get (One example, every year over $1 billion in social security funds are spent not on paying benefits to those with disabilities, but on paying lawyers to argue that they deserve the benefits, and appealing when the benefits are denied).

--Collect taxes that are due, but unpaid/uncollected.

--End tax-avoidance schemes by multi-nationals and the wealthy.

--Raise tax rates on the wealthy and on corporations.

--Stop subsidizing the wealthy

--Raise the minimum wage, and make increases in the minimum wage somewhat automatic, or at least easier to implement.

--Increase collective bargaining powers.

--More public housing. Make it possible for the poor to become homeowners with government subsidized financing.

--Ensure fair access to capital. Regulate banks and lending to the poor.

--End restrictive zoning laws.

This is just a sampling--there is more.

It's a pretty informative book, but I'm not sure it has any good answers, and I am sure there are no easy answers.

3stars

[dokfintong · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I read this book immediately after Mehdi Hasan's "Win Every Argument" and immediately pegged Matthew Desmond as a master of the Gish Gallop, a debate technique that relies on a firehose of facts and figures presented too fast for analysis and rebuttal. Even if you agree with most of what he says, it is annoying. This is a great reference book, but it is not an analysis.

[othemts · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In the follow-up to his excellent work Evicted, Matthew Desmond examines the root causes of poverty in the United States.  He eschews the usual route of explaining why the poor are poor, but instead what the middle and upper class have done to impoverish the poor (an approach that ultimately implicates just about everyone who will read this book).  Exploitation of the poor falls on the hands of landlords, payday lenders and banks, employers, the gig economy, and government regulations that encourage the opposite of what is supposed to be the path out of poverty.

Desmond has no patience for the oft-used"we can't afford it" excuse for not alleviating poverty at a systemic level, outlining numerous actions we can take collectively the would address poverty well within the economy of the world's wealthiest nation.  Desmond challenges readers to recognize how most of us in the middle and upper class benefit from exploitation and poverty and be willing to sacrifice these things to become "poverty abolitionists."  Honestly, I regret listening to this as an audiobook because if I read it in print I would've highlighted key passages to share.  But it's a short book and I recommend reading it if you care about reversing poverty.

[erwinkennythomas · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Matthew Desmond’s Poverty, by America shines a light on one of the most appalling conditions in the nation. The author saw all Americans as complicit in the plight of the poor. In the early chapters of this book, he clearly spells out these problems. He showed how no one is exempt from this cancer that continues to grow.
Strange as it may seem the poor subsidizes the amenities Americans enjoy. Many Americans have checking accounts that do not require them to pay fees. This is because banks benefit from the poor when they overdraw funds, and by propping up loan sharks that make a killing on interest lending them money.
Many middle-class Americans live in their own homes. They reside in communities where there is not housing for the poor. Most of the poor are in urban areas in the slums. As the author showed rents in these rundown and dilapidated buildings are relatively high compared to those in the more affluent communities. Maintenance in the ghettos is poor, apartments are falling apart, lead paint is peeling, and there is a lack of basic amenities.
Racism is prevalent in America. It is a nightmare living in conditions where the death rate by guns is high. Black children are not allowed to be children. Many are holed up in mice and roach infected apartments. These are the children of parents who do the menial jobs in the country with most on welfare. Welfare that is often seen as difficult to obtain. As Desmond showed that billions of dollars are not collected every year. Most of it because the process of obtaining such relief has been made quite complex.
Attempts to obtain low-income housing in middle-class communities are often faced with opposition. Affluent neighborhoods do not want such projects because of falling house prices. So, there is a great housing shortage for those who need it most. To compound the issue the wages of the poor are quite low, and most are unable to pay higher rent. These poor individuals live from pay check to pay check, and many are in debt. Desmond pointed out that even when there is a wage increase the cost of rent and food go up just stifling the poor.
Desmond called on readers to be “poor abolitionists.” He stated all Americans could play their part if they are vigilant. They should not do business with those companies that exploit the poor. A great deal has to do with how they shop, and the bank accounts they open. Essential too, Americans must be willing to make the necessary sacrifices to accomplish these goals. The author further stressed that if one percent of the richest corporations should pay their fair share of taxes such a commitment will contribute billions that will surely eradicate poverty.

[amniot · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Everyone should read this book. It is not very long, it's not a big ask. Many eye-opening insights. Other countries simply do not have the disparities in wealth and lack of social net that we have in U.S. and it is because the well-off refuse to do even the tiny little bit that could reduce or eliminate poverty. One example: the mortgage tax deduction. The vast majority of this government giveaway goes to rich people with big homes. The amount is much larger than what we spend on all public housing. Most government aid goes to the well-off - and they (we!) squawk at the idea that even a small portion might be taken away. Thus, poverty is baked into our system, because the well-off benefit from it. (Though perhaps they would also benefit from lower crime and living in a more moral country and the security of knowing there is a safety net for them and their children.)

[lyndainoregon · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Desmond frontloads his look at poverty in America with so many statistics that many readers will never get to the last third of the book, where he gets down to the nitty-gritty on ways to deal with the issue.

[kristenl_69 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I waited to read this book until summer break, thinking it would be a dense read. I was surprised at how readable it is. Desmond explains the problems of poverty, makes the case that the poverty in our country results from greed, and offers some possible solutions. I felt it was a hopeful book, providing evidence that changes can be made despite our partisan differences. I loved his anecdote of a group of minority restaurant workers who were demonstrating for a higher minimum wage, being joined by a group of MAGA demonstrators there to protest the certification of the 2020 presidential election.

[katyefk · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Read for our Nonfiction book club. Discussion is tomorrow. Intense book with many eye opening facts and insights. This poverty issue is as systemic as racism. I do find myself looking at how I am supporting poverty rather than abundance. The idea of folks creating spaces to separate themselves from public spaces is very disappointing to say the least. In Australia, where we lived for 8 years, the public parks and beaches and community gathering spaces are used by all people in the country. The idea of walling oneself off and therefore causing damage to the the value of public spaces is unheard of. These spaces are for everyone. The USA folks could learn a good lesson here.

[kalliegrace · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I'm so mad at the people and systems of power in this country after reading things like this. There is just no reason anyone should be suffering today, especially in one of the wealthiest nations on earth. We have the resources to fix these problems, and the greed to never try. I wish this had been longer and more in depth. I'm going to read Eviction soon which I understand has more meat.

[rivkat_2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I didn’t really learn a lot but there was a lot of concentrated, well-articulated information about how the rich and middle-class in the US expropriate wealth from the poor, through mechanisms like poverty wages, exclusionary zoning, underpaying taxes, high rents, and so on. He wants to produce productive anger, not despair, and argues that we can actually have nice things if we start treating wealthier people’s attempts to withdraw from society as illegitimate, including by actually enforcing tax collection on richer people and by mandating inclusionary zoning.

[brianinbuffalo · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Some critics of Desmond’s latest work have branded it a “manifesto” that is likely to solidify divisions along political lines.Others have called it an op-ed piece that goes on for the length of an entire book. I understand their points, but I believe “Poverty, by America” casts an unforgiving spotlight on the root causes of systemic poverty and economic disparities. True, the author’s passionate appeal for sweeping reforms on several fronts might be painted as overly strident by some. But I found his positions to be well-argued and many of his real-life anecdotes to be heartbreaking. As a news junkie, I’ve seen most of his positions explored on numerous media platforms. However, this fact doesn’t diminish the importance of Desmond’s book.

[hccpsk · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Matthew Desmond (Evicted) turns his precise and liberal-minded brand of economics onto the state of poverty in his short but powerful new book, Poverty, By America. Desmond skillfully dissects US policy and history to reveal the roots of class problems and he also gives some simple (but controversial) solutions. Readers looking for a harsh but realistic look at poverty, its causes, and potential solutions should definitely give this a look.

[jnwelch_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Not poverty in America; by America. We’’ve sustained it by choice and we can abolish it by choice. There’s plenty of money, Desmond shows us, to get rid of poverty altogether in this country. All of us non-poor are benefitting, to one degree or another, from perpetuating it. He proves in detail how this is so. As in his monumental Evicted, every “radical” conclusion he reaches is based on deep and extensive research detailed in his notes, and comes across to the reader as common sense. If we enforced our tax laws against the wealthy and corporations, there’s plenty of money. If we tax the wealthy as we did in pre-Reagan years, there’s plenty. If we redirect existing government money in sensible ways, there’s plenty. And it’s not just throwing money. In various parts of this large country communities have found effective ways to alleviate poverty and provide affordable housing. (New Jersey(!) is a surprising exemplar for the latter), and these can be more widely adapted.

You and I also can provide the type of boycotts and directional buying we’ve supplied in favor of other social causes like combatting racism and sexism; we can become “poverty abolitionists”. If a company is unfairly underpaying its workers and overpaying its leadership, we can apply both consumer and investor pressure. We have been and are, he persuasively argues, exploiting the poor for our extra measures of affluence. It’s time to recognize it and remedy it.

I can already hear the cries of alarm over libtard “socialism.” As he shows us, it’s more a matter of fairness and easy affordability than anything else. No need to dismantle our system or overhaul it. It’s a matter of direction and will. And making our country great .. . . finally.

What an exciting and flowing read. “Common Sense”, as Thomas Paine might’ve titled it.

Some Excerpts;

"(The question) we should ask every time we pass a tent encampment, those tarped American slums smelling of asphalt and bodies, every time we see someone asleep on the bus,slumped over in work clothes, is simply Who benefits?Not Why don’t you find a job? Or Why don’t you move or Why dion’t you stop taking out such bad loans? but Who is feeding off this?

In 2020 the federal government spent more than $193 billion on homeowner subsidies, a figure that far exceeds the amount spent on direct housing assistance for low income families ($53 billion). Most families who enjoy those subsidies have six figure incomes and are white.

I can’t tell you how many times someone has informed me that we should reduce military spending and redirect the savings to the poor. . . . In a public venue, it always garners applause. I’ve met far fewer people who have suggested we boost aid to the poor by reducing tax breaks that mostly benefit the upper class, even though we spend twice as much on them as on the military and national defense.

The American government gives the most help to those that need it the least. This is the true nature of our welfare state, and it has far-reaching implications, not just for our bank accounts and poverty levels, but also for our psychology and civic spirit."

[mdoris_6 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I am Canadian and I am not pointing a finger to say America is bad and we are good. No I am not! Canada has it's fair share of MAJOR problems. There is more pressure right now in Canada on food banks than at any time over the last 40 years I read recently. Matthew Desmond's book Evicted was a major eye opener for me and this one is too. How could there be so much poverty, such suffering when the nation is so rich and the wealthy only getting richer and more of them? Please read this book! Some major changes need to happen. There is also a great deal of information in the book about racial imbalance that is critical to understand to create the necessary changes that must happen.

[pomo58 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Poverty, by America by Matthew Desmond is an in-depth look at why poverty persists in the United States and offers some suggestions for making actual improvements, not just cosmetic patchwork.

People in the US rely, whether knowingly or not, on having a certain amount of poverty. It is the nature of both capitalism and the "American Way." Even those of us who believe that making the world better for those suffering hardship and those oppressed makes the world better for all reap the benefits of having poor people. Even more damning, in having groups of people locked into generational poverty.

There is no single way to measure or understand poverty. Numbers alone only tell part of the story, especially when those numbers can be manipulated by who does or doesn't get counted, how percentages of income are figured, and even what counts as income is counted. Factors ranging from race and gender to environmental impact and horribly skewed governmental policy all play parts.

If there is no singular way to measure poverty, then there can't be a single one-size-fits-all solution. Many things need to be done, ideally in conjunction with each other, and including the dismantling of many institutions that have been around so long that people have come to think of them as having always been present.

Until we take into account the many things that make up the broad concept of poverty, we are limited in how effective any proposed solution can be. Desmond goes a long way in making the reader gain a broader and more compassionate view of poverty. From this new vantage point we can begin to formulate ideas that might actually work, and there are some suggestions here.

Highly recommended for anyone who wants to know more about poverty, particularly in the US, and why we haven't been able to make progress in spite of (alleged) good intentions from legislators.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.